"What do you see with your Sharingan?"

"I see your death," Sasuke spat.

Itachi tilted his head, examining Sasuke closely. "It's possible, in your quest to avenge our clan you've become an even more fearsome monster than me." Itachi sighed and frowned, "as it stands if you do kill me Danzo will kill you."

Sasuke scowled, "And why would he do that?"

Itachi reached into his Akatsuki jacket. "Why- because he only swore not to harm you because I made him… You were my 30 pieces of silver- for you- I killed the rest of the Uchiha Clan under Danzo's orders."

Sasuke glared now, a deathly venomous glance, which would surely have killed Itachi where he stood a thousand times over- if only Itachi didn't have his own Mangekyo Sharingan.

"I wanted you to avenge the clan, I wanted you to kill me, and I wanted you to redeem our clan, it seems that last one is impossible now… I thankfully have backup plans." He pulled his hand out of his jacket holding a glass jar, a pair of eyes soaking in it. "You recognize these don't you?"

Sasuke looked closer- then his eyes widened in recognition.

"Yes, you would- they were our father's of course. Father who pushed you so hard, hoping you, backed by the rest of the clan-… might overthrow the Hokage…"

Itachi pried out his own eyes one at a time, slipping in his father's as a replacement, a moment and a chakara powered glow later and Itachi blinked, looking left, then right, and finally facing Sasuke again. He put his own eyes in the jar, closed it, and tossed them to Sasuke. "If you win, you might need those."

Sasuke scoffed at the jarred eyes in his hand and set them on the ground, "And what if I want the ones currently in your skull?"

Itachi smirked, "You think you can take them? Tell you what, make a promise- if you do get them- you'll go home and settle down…"

Sasuke quirked an eyebrow, "Is that supposed to be some sort of brotherly advice," he scowled and unsheathed his katana, he began charging it with his lightning chakara.

Itachi reached into his cloak and pulled out his own sword- Sasuke gasped in recognition-

"Totsuka?" He then scoffed, "You can't harm me with that..."

"Come on Sasuke, give me your all."

Sasuke quickly summoned a massive Grand Fireball- but seemingly wastefully launched it into the air…

The sky turned dark fast, Sasuke's flames stirring up a small but furious thunderstorm. Sasuke leapt up and with a Chidori in one hand, and his sword in the other, guided the massive bolt of lightning down at Itachi.

When the smoke cleared Sasuke found himself starring at a massive ethereal figure surrounding Itachi. Within the figure Itachi had one eye shut, droplets of blood leaking out from that eye.

"Was that your trump card, are you spent now little brother?"

Sasuke was panting, his eyes no longer even displaying his Sharingan status- a moment later Sasuke's body began to twitch and convulse- his skin took a scaled appearance and his chest seemed to become a massive snakehead which opened to reveal Orachimaru. Orachimaru reached into his mouth to reveal Kusunagi.

Before Orachimaru could even form the words to gloat, Itachi came down on him with Totsuka. Orachimaru smirked as if to gloat at the futileness of the gesture- only to end up with a very confused glance before melting back into Sasuke's body. A moment later Sasuke was on his knees, back in his own form, his chakara even more spent.

Itachi walked over to Sasuke and tapped his forehead, much as he had done when they were younger, but this time as he did so Sasuke felt a warm sensation that must have been a release of Chakara- then his sight went dim- and he blacked out…

Zetsu slid back into the ground and retreated to report to Tobi.

Tobi looked down at Naruto and the others as they began thinking of a new approach.

"Sasuke lost- and Itachi spared him- whisking him away behind the backs of both Kisame and Sasuke's accomplices."

Tobi's head rocked back, "Hm, perhaps I underestimated Itachi, he must have learned more than I thought."

"Itachi has Sasuke!" Naruto exclaimed- picking out the only part of that which he understood.

"Yes, I wonder what he'd going to do now?"

"This wasn't part of your plan," Kakashi asked.

Madara chuckled, "Though not entirely unexpected, no- this was not a part of my plan." He clapped his hands together twice and spoke again in a dismissive tone, "Oh well, can't have the strong hand every time, doesn't stop change anything important."

When Sasuke opened his eyes again he realized his hands and feet were bound, even his fingers were tied together. He was dangling over Itachi's shoulder-

Itachi wasn't wearing the Akatsuki cloak- he was back in his Anbu uniform…

"You lying BASTARD! Everything you said was a lie to get me to drop my guard!"

Itachi didn't respond immediately. Sasuke started to struggle, trying to shake his way off of Itachi's shoulder.

Itachi jarred Sasuke, "Everything I said was truth. I wanted you to become a hero to the village, one who saved the world from the evil- well- me," he smirked. "I guess Madara was right about all that clan blood hate nonsense… People like Danzo create rifts, and people like you and Mandara fall into those rifts, and the hate overflows."

"Shut up SHUT UP! It's all lies! Mandara is DEAD and you're the monster!..." Sasuke paused both to catch his breath from screaming at the top of his lungs and to look around at where they were.

Just as Sasuke began to gain his bearings Itachi hoisted him off his shoulder and chucked him into a boat.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Itachi got into the boat and started a small engine. "You'll never be Konoha's hero, not without destroying the peace, so the Uchiha Clan will become the hero of another village."

"You REALLY think it's that simple," Sasuke spat.

"The logic of it is, but you're right that it will take time."

"LOGIC!" Sasuke began to laugh in a crazed tone.

Itachi sighed and shook his head, "I could have gagged you at any time you realize, do you want to know why I didn't?"

"You think it gains you some margin of trust," Sasuke said sarcastically.

"Hardly, I know perfectly well you'll never trust me again. No, I want to talk, really talk- that or I figure you'll scream yourself hoarse…"

Sasuke scowled, "Where are we going?"

"Kirigakure, the Godaime Mizukage is new, and may be willing to accept us if we agree to help her stabilize her power center. There are still those with ambitions of becoming Mizukage even now that Yondaime is finally dead, in addition to those still loyal to the Nidaime Mizukage- who was really Madara in disguise."

"You said you know I'll never trust you, why are you taking me with you then?"

"Because as I said, both of our lives in Konoha are over. We can't return without revealing Danzo's plot, which would cause even more strife that Konoha doesn't need."

"I'll still kill you."

"You'll keep trying, and one day you probably will succeed, for now think of what I can teach you."

Sasuke frowned and turned away from Itachi, "I've nothing to learn from you."

"You just keep telling yourself that…" Itachi sat back against the back of the boat in silence, Sasuke refused to keep talking, and Itachi was patient enough to wait for him to break the silence.